December 31, 2008

Vitamin C Connected To Low Blood Pressure In Young Women

A new survey conducted in young females connects high vitamin C in the bloodstream with lower blood pressure.

This finding "strongly suggests that vitamin C is specifically important in maintaining a healthy blood pressure," lead author Dr. Gladys Block, of the University of California, Berkeley, said.

Prior data connected high plasma levels of vitamin C with healthier blood pressure in the middle-aged and older, usually with unhealthy blood pressure, Block and colleagues stated.

The new study took 242 black and white women, about 18 and 21 years old, with healthy blood pressure, who previously participated in the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study. The women entered the study at the age of 8 to 11 years old. In 10 years, their plasma levels of vitamin C and blood pressure were closely followed.

After 10 years, Block and her researchers discovered that blood pressure was connected with ascorbic acid, or vitamin C levels.

Particularly, women with the biggest numbers of ascorbic acid saw a fall of about 4.66 mm Hg in systolic and 6.04 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure contrasting the women with the smallest ascorbic acid numbers. This dissimilarity held up after researchers noted the distinction in body mass, race, education levels, and dietary fat and sodium intake.

More investigation into vitamin C and blood pressure alterations in the preceding year, "also strongly suggested that the people with the highest blood level of vitamin C had the least increase in blood pressure," Block noted.

Because these discoveries suppose a link connecting vitamin C and blood pressure in young adults, Block and colleagues see a need for more research.